


Long and Complicated Stories

by Tea_Queen_2112



Category: Game of Thrones (TV)
Genre: Drunk crying, Friendship, Gen, Mixture of Tv and Book, Past Abuse, Prompt Fic, Prompt submitted by Misa04, Slightly AU from the canon, Unresolved Trauma, alcohol is involved, dadvos, droughtjoy2017, mentions of ramsay - Freeform
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-08-22
Updated: 2017-08-22
Packaged: 2018-12-18 17:05:58
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,827
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11878974
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Tea_Queen_2112/pseuds/Tea_Queen_2112
Summary: Theon was having another restless night in the Halls of Dragonstone and to try and fix this he normally goes on walks to clear his mind. Most nights he would come and go uninterrupted however tonight was different. He comes across a tired man who stank of crab meat and salt water.What follows is an interesting encounter to say the least.Prompt 17 submitted my Misa04





	Long and Complicated Stories

**Author's Note:**

> Enjoy!

The halls of Dragonstone were quiet at night. The only real sound was that of the winds blowing against the stones and the occasional rain droplets that would drop down from the roof through cracks that had formed over the years. This castle had seen its fair share of wear and tear with not enough maintained.

Tonight was different however.

The gods were feeling angry tonight to the storm was coming in fast and hard. The first crack of lightning had woken Theon from his chambers. He may have been tired but he was grateful for the dreary weather as it saved him another night of pain. Theon's dreams could be one of two things. It would either been a deeply buried memory resurfacing to torment him and leaving him more tired than he was or it would be another one of Yara and everyone he had betrayed telling him what a worthless waste of a man he was.

In order to get a clear head a walk around the castle seemed to be fitting enough. He still wans't used to the layout but he supposed it wouldn't matter as he would probably be leaving soon in order to rescue his sister from the clutches of their dreaded uncle Euron.

The loneliness was what he was used to at this point. No matter what he always seemed like he was by himself.

So to hear approaching footsteps coming towards him naturally was making him nervous. Instead of a tall, blue eyes monster standing at the end of the hall he got an elderly gentlemen. Weary from the long day of work, his eyes said it all. He had seen him on the beach when Jon had him by the throat.

The man locked eyes on him and rubbed it to make sure it wasn't just his tired mind pulling a deceptive trick on him. Davos now recognised him from the beach as well. Theon looked to the ground while Davos stared at him straight in the eyes.

"Lad, what are you doing up at this time?" It was rather late at night or early in the morning depended on how one would look at it. Davos had been walking about and he hadn't met a single person who was still awake apart from the Dothraki who were preparing their resources.

"Ser Davos isn't it?" Theon asked avoiding the question, his question avoiding skills had become near perfection after living with Ramsay all those years.

"Aye it is." He answered back at him.

The situation was beginning to feel pressurized to Theon and panic began to set in so his flight reflex was naturally activated in his mind. "I'm going back to my room now. Sorry for bothering you."

As he walked, or rather limped with a fake confidence, Davos blocked his path back towards his room. As much as he would have loved to tell Davos to move aside that response had been beaten out of him. Telling someone to do something was something he wasn't allowed to do anymore. He was the one who received orders and that was that. If he even began to try Ramsay's voice would come back to him and he would have to stop for fear of his mind reverting back to Reek.

"You're grand. I've known many men who couldn't sleep at night so they try and walk it off. There's a better alternative you know." He said suggestively.

This had Theon intrigued. If it would help clear his head it was worth giving it a shot. "What do they do instead?"

"They drink." Davos said plainly while pulling out a bota bag which also made a sloshing sound which indicated it had recently been filled to the brim. If Theon knew where this was going he guessed it would need refilling before the night was over.

Theon gave a small sigh. He wasn't going to lie but while he seemed friendly enough to most Theon had trouble trusting anyone he didn't really know. Also when it came to things like this he still didn't have the confidence to say no so he went along with it and hoped that the stranger didn't have an ulterior motive to this. Alcohol had helped him so far so a little more wouldn't kill him.

Instead of drinking in the halls and risk having someone else stumble upon them they decided to take it into a spare room. The room which they chose had a big enough table so they could pass the drink to each other but also talk about things, a fire which was still blazing would keep them warm and it was close enough to both their own rooms so if they ended up getting too drunk they wouldn't risk getting lost.

Once they had settled in their seats Davos pulled out two drinks. It was only now that he got the smell of Davos. He stank of fermented crab meat and salt water. He guessed he was a trader of sorts. Theon never quite got used to it but the sea water he could do. He opened up one and took the first sip as if it were a ceremony. Theon knew that Davos would want him to talk first and he really didn't feel like that so he took the first move, once again another trick picked up from his time with the Bolton family. "So what's your story? How did you end up working with Jon Snow?

Davos himself had to take a moment to think about the circumstances of how he went from the real Hand of the King Stannis Baratheon to the unofficial Hand of the King of Jon Snow. "Well it's a very long and complicated story."

"Tell me please." The last thing Theon wanted to think about was himself so perhaps hearing someone else's story might take his mind of his own sorrow filled tale. Davos could see he was not in a talking mood so he began the brave tale of the Onion Knight.

"I was originally with Stannis Baratheon." Davos began. Considering everything that had went down since then it felt like Stannis was a life time ago. The Blackwater almost seemed like another life completely.

Theon remembered his master talking about Stannis well, how he was going to take him into the torture chamber and flay him alive and then if they happened to find his daughter how Ramsay would fuck her in front of his eyes. It had been disgusting to hear but Theon had no choice but to listen to every single detail.

"Then there was the battle of the Blackwater. I lost my son to the Wildfyre. I watched as he died."

Theon hadn't expected him to share such a shocking and personal detail with a complete stranger. Little did he know it was actual a clever trick by Davos to gain his trust and speak a little more. He wasn't trying to be manipulative for any bad purpose, he simply wanted to help the poor boy and from experience the only way to help was by speaking and listening. All men had to do it and though it seemed a womanly thing by most other men Davos was smart and Davos knew better.

"I'm so sorry." Theon said. He could begin to imagine what it was like to lose a child. He had lost a lot of men in the field of battle and that had effected him badly but a child was something universally different. 

"Things went on and we met with Jon at Castle Black to get his support to reclaim the North. I lost a son but I had Shireen, Stannis' daughter. She was the most innocent soul put on this world of liars and thieves." Davos half expected him to know some of the things that had happened in the North but Theon was clueless and seemed totally engrossed in the story. Of course Ramsay would never speak to his Reek about such valuable information as Reek was only good for pleasing his master. Theon took the bag and took a drink at the memory. He learned that it was also wine in the bag as he nearly coughed it up as he was anticipating something a little less potent.

Before telling the rest of his story it seemed that he had to take another drink before continuing, Davos took back the wine. Theon guessed it was going to be a hard part of his story to tell so he braced himself for whatever he might hear. A dark shadow seemed to form over his head as he spoke in a less light hearted voice then before. 

"Then I left to get help for Stannis and he and the Red witch burned that little helpless girl. He burned my Shireen while she was screaming for help." Davos wasn't afraid to talk openly about how his children died but that didn't mean he wasn't okay with it. These deaths had left a major impact on him and while he seemed humours most of the time he did feel their deaths weighing on him constantly. If he hadn't of left then maybe he could have gotten Shireen away, if he hadn't let Matthos join the battle maybe he would be alive.

Needless to say at the mention of a little child being burned his body had a moment of him twitching as his mind tried not to panic and tried to reason with itself that it had been long ago.

"Nothing…Just the wine getting to me that's all." Theon lied. This was the first time he had properly talked with Seaworth and he didn't want to give of the impression that he was weak. Then again after being weak for so long wearing a strong façade was an entirely new challenge. Davos didn't seem convinced but he didn't want to push the boy further.

"Then we won the battle of the bastards and Jon became King in the North." By the end of it both of them were a little bit tipsy but mostly sober. Theon was shocked but all he could do was say he was sorry that thing had worked out for him like that. "That is quite the tale."

The bitter sweet wine was passed between them once again.

"Speaking of tales you haven't told me yours. I was a smuggler and it's not a fair trade if things aren't equal. Tell me your life story. I won't tell Jon or anyone if that's what your afraid of." Davos was intrigued by the man. Of course he had heard the name Greyjoy before but it seemed that for a long time no one spoke of the family. Theon's name was in the wind and most people thought that he had died after he took siege of Winterfell. Davos also recalled something being mentioned about Moat Cailin and Theon Greyjoy but he wasn't sure of the full story. Something about betrayal.

This was what Theon had been trying to avoid. "I don't really know…You'll think differently of me."

Davos gave a hearty, slightly slurred laugh. "This is the first time I'm really speaking to you so it'll be something big if it changes my option of you."

The remark actually got the smallest laugh to escape Theon's lips. "You know what I mean."

Despite only meeting him less than a couple of hours ago there was something about him that made him want to trust him. He seemed like an honest man which was rarer than any dragon or Valyrian steel. There was also a fatherly quality about him, he supposed that was to be expected considering how many child figures he had in his life.

Theon remained silent and handed the drink back to its original owner.

"You're not one for talking about your problems are you?" Davos took another sip and handed it back to Theon who only response was taking a longer and deeper swig.

"Most people don't care about my problems. I should just let the past be dead and move on." Once again that was the entire Iron Born culture talking.

"A past with whom?"

"Ramsay Bolton." He didn't know if it was genuine trust or the wine which was talking but seeing as how he had been able to share he thought he might as well share too.

Davos never thought that Theon would know of the bastard of the Dreadfort. The last time that he had seen him was during the battle of the bastards and he had just watched as Jon was running foolishly towards him as he slaughtered Rickon before all their eyes for him to see. He was a psychopath through and through.

"You know him?" Davos asked. He didn't know what about the question had registered in his mind but Theon let out a chocked sob before covering his own mouth as to try and make it seem like it didn't happen.

"Know him?! He's the one who- pass the bottle." He had to stop himself before he said anything else and risk being physically sick all over him. No better way to get rid of bad memories then by drowning them in good matured wine. Reek couldn't come out if he was drunk.

"I'm not gonna ask what he did to you but I just want to say I'm sorry for whatever you've suffered. Well at least he's dead now lad."

Theon had the bottle just touching his lips but at Davos' words made him stop. His word was collapsing around him.

"You didn't know…I'm sorry." Davos tried to offer a hand of comfort but Theon moved away suddenly. He couldn't be touched at the moment for his mind was in the state of any one's hands becoming Ramsay's.

"I thought you had taken him prisoner. I should have known Jon wouldn't let him live." Theon was trying to diminish how terrible the situation was to him but his body movements were suggesting otherwise.

"Wasn't Jon who killed him."

"Who?" Theon had a hard time thinking of who else could have done it because there were so many lives he had ruined. In fact it might have been easier to think of who wouldn't want to kill him.

"Lady Sansa. Let his own dogs eat him alive." Davos said with a smirk. He didn't condone much violence unless it was needed.

Theon stood corrected. The only person who deserved to kill him. It seemed fitting that it had been the dogs who had eaten him alive. "I'm glad she got her justice."

Theon sighed.

"When I took Winterfell my life became a living hell. Ramsay Bolton captured me. I was at his mercy. Oh wait, he has no mercy in his body." Once he had started there was no stopping him. He had been bottling this up for far too long and now it was time for it to be released. Yara had underestimated how bad it was and didn't allow him to talk about it so it had been kept inside for quite a while.

Davos wouldn't wish Ramsay Bolton upon his worst enemy. Well maybe perhaps the Lady Melisandre for what she did for her 'Lord of Light' but he was thinking away from the topic. "Oh dear gods. I'm sorry."

Theon couldn't hear his condolences, he was busy reliving every moment in his mind. "He took everything. He flayed, fucked and beat me almost every day until there was no Theon left. Only-Only Re-ek."

His voiced had cracked at Reek. He never wanted to say that name again for as long as he lived. The wine was adding a little to his confidence and he began to talk with a bit violence in his voice. Something clicked in Davos' mind. Something from a long time ago. "The pink letter…"

Theon choked on his drink. "The what?" Theon had left Winterfell by the time that Ramsay had written it so he had no idea what it entailed. To have this stranger know somewhat of his person as Reek thoroughly freaked him out. His eye twitched and Davos could see the confusion written all over his face so he took the time to explain.

"Before the Battle of the Bastards Ramsay Bolton sent a letter to Castle Black. At the end he said that he would give us an extra month to prepare if we gave him his Reek back. We didn't know what he meant by Reek but Lady Sansa did and she said that we weren't to do anything about it. Reek had died saving her."

Theon didn't know what emotion to express. Should he have laughed for the naïve Sansa to think that Reek was dead? Fear that Ramsay was that determined to get him back. Or the odd feeling that Ramsay would give them an extra month of military time just to have him back.

Theon wasn't sure of his relationship with Ramsay because while it was pure poisonous filth, it had become a bit of a dependant on both sides. Theon relied on master for everything but Ramsay also needed him to fill some kind of twisted emotion role. He knew that he wasn't the first Reek that Ramsay had and made the assumption that it was one of the things that gave him true joy. To have someone to truly confide in and have total trust in.

"I'm glad Sansa is safe." He said wanting to think of anything but him. Before they knew it they ended up finishing of the first wine bag. Davos was so interested in hearing the young krakens tale he completely forgot about the second one he had been meaning to use.

"Then when I got home Euron was there, he forced us away from home and we ran. We joined Daenerys and her cause. Then that fucking sea battle." When he finished his sentence he was silent. He couldn't finish it.

"With your Uncle?"

Theon wiped a stray tear with his now shaking hand. "I should have died. I should have fucking died!"

Davos wasn't expecting such a violent outburst. Men who say they should have died had a lot of regrets. "Woah easy there son. Tell me what happened."

Theon wasn't sobbing but the tears were flowing down his face and he was trying to stop it. His mind was tempted to go back to Reek but he knew he had to be strong just like his sister told him to be. Seeing as they had already shared quite a bit he might as well tell him what a bloody coward he had been.

He was only just able to stop himself from having a full breakdown and through a strained voice he was able to continue. "Euron had Yara by the throat, an Axe to it. I was going to help her but then everything that was happening around me I remembered what Ramsay did. Men being mutilated all around me, Yara's men! I didn't know what to do so I fled like a coward! Why did I do that? Why!"

Theon grabbed Davos in a hug and nearly squeezed the life out of him. Davos was still. He had never seen anyone quite this hysterical before but he knew Ramsay's torture must have had a lasting effect on him. He could get a good idea of what Ramsay had done when Theon dug his fingers into his back but instead of ten digits he felt one or two less. He knew what that was like though it was only his fingertips.

When Davos did manage to pry the Greyjoy off him he was able to get a look of his face and the look broke his heart. It was the face of a broken man trying to keep himself from falling apart. Being a smuggler he had seen many things in his years but nothing quite like this.

"Listen I'm going to give you some advice I gave to a young lad, by the name of Clovis, not too long ago. It is better to be a coward for a minute then dead for the rest of your life. From the sound of things if you had tried to save her the both of you would be dead. Or worse. The both of you are alive and now you can plan to get her back. You did the right thing."

While his words were helpful in spirit realistically he didn't think that they were true. He was going to reply with a sharp "Did I?" but he felt that it might have been a little too sharp and he was trying to genuinely offer him advice after all. He shouldn't take his emotions out on the old man any more.

"It doesn't seem like it but trust me you did." Davos reassured him again.

"I think…That's enough wine…" Theon said passing the empty bag back to him. He was getting a head ache either from the wine or from the emotional stress and now he was defiantly ready for a good long sleep. The both of them were.

"We should probably get heading our separate ways. I'm heading north in the morning." Davos said as Theon nodded in agreement.

Theon placed a hand on his head to stop it from hurting. Perhaps taking so many swigs wasn't such a good idea. "I apologize for keeping you then."

"Don't. It was a good chat. When I get back I'd like to talk with you more." This boy had some major issues and he seemed like he could use a good father figure to lay them out on. Considering he had acted like a therapist to half the people he knew he guessed one more person couldn't hurt.

"And I you. Thank you Ser Davos." Theon couldn't express his gratitude enough to the Onion Knight. The only person who listened to him when he needed it. He could feel like they were going to be seeing more of each other in the future. Despite it being absolutely one of the most painful things to talk about getting out had surprisingly lifted a bit of the weight that was dragging down his mind and the advice that Davos had offered was helpful in making him feel less like shit.

"I wish you a safe return." Theon took his hand and shook it lightly.

"I hope you get your sister back." Davos retorted back. He hoped that getting her back might lessen the lad's load of guilt but it was going to take a long time before his mind could be completely clear.

And with that they left the room both feeling better having let their problems out. Theon more so then Davos but the elder enjoyed listening and helping where he could.

It had been good to share their long and complicated stories.


End file.
